Solid victory this weekend, albeit over lowly Watford. Walcott has got crazy speed and some skill to boot. Rosicky is, in a word, dangerous. Another clean sheet as well.
It’s going to be very tempting for some people to start talking about challenging for the League, or wrapping up qualification for the next round of the Champs League. It’s going to be easy to start singing the praises of certain players. That’s all fine, but remember, a poor result and we’re going to hear from others claiming this player or that one is crap. Or that Wenger hasn’t learned how to manage.
Life is rarely black and white. Our opinions shouldn’t be either. The team is on a nice run, let’s enjoy it. I don’t think they are going to win the league and I don’t think they are going to be relegated. I’d love to hear some thoughtful analysis of how we can take second and really push the league leaders. Anyone? Bueller?
35 Responses to “The Arsenal Continue To Roll”
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October 15th, 2006 at 2:19 pm
Wht a lovely stress-free win against Watford! I actually think that we do have a chance against Chelsea and ManU, all be it a dificult one.
All of the games Chelsea have been playing recently have had a fair amount of luck. Just look at yesterday, with the only goal being a Lampard pinball (his regular special). Their squad is composed of all-stars, but they don't play great football and they don't have the synergy (a silly word, I know) of a good enough team. They also aren't as deep as they used to be, so an injury to key player could cause serious trouble. Add to that the horrible keeper problems from that last game and Ithink we can take points from them, and I think Manchester could take pionts from them. Add in a couple of draws or even losses against the rest of the league and they got drop a bit.
Man U are definitely looking the better team right now, however I think there problems lie in defence and their back part of the midfield. They also don't have the depth if someone like Ronaldo, Rooney, or Giggs have to stay out for several games. We've seen them draw with Reading and lose to us, so we know that other teams can take their points.
The Arsenal just need to keep on playing their football, wait out for our injuries to recover, and keep scoring goals. We've got a ton of matches from now until February, so we just need to keep the good feeling going.
Bueller!
Gunnerrific
October 15th, 2006 at 3:45 pm
It is still too early to tell if this Arsenal team has turned the corner. No question the away win at ManUre was a HUGE boost to team confidence. I like to see how this team fare against the Boltons, Blackburns and Evertons. If we beat them, then I think Arsenal has truly found a way to play against physical teams. I am less concerned about Arsenal’s game in the CL as Wenger seemed to have a working formula. Lets see how we fare against CSKA on Tuesday.
October 15th, 2006 at 5:03 pm
Next two games will tell a lot.
Moscow away is never an easy game. Then back to Reading away who took out two Chelsea goalkeepers with their play. Anyone fancy a red card for Jens???
This team looks better than last season’s but we are not in November yet. Looking at the fixture list, we have a lot of games in London between now and the middle of December. Our Christmas run includes a number of away games against teams that will try to kick us off the pitch. If we are five behind with a game in hand come January, I will be really looking forward to the second half of the season, but it is a long way until 2007.
October 15th, 2006 at 5:19 pm
We can never really tell from this early in the season whether we’ll win this or that. All we can ever say is whether we are strong enough to challenge and I think we are.
The hunger seems to be back and the big difference from last season is that the build up play doesn’t just consist of finding Henry asap. We have options again and some nice understandings developing: Hleb and Eboue (before injury), Fab and Rosicky, Ade and Henry etc.
When, hopefully, all the long term injuries clear up, we’ll have a deep squad - still very young, but with decent experience and room to improve.
October 15th, 2006 at 8:36 pm
The squad looked pretty sharp this weekend. The best part of this run is that there is still plenty of room left for improvement. Some new players (i.e. Baptista when he recovers) can be more integrated and some quality defenders (Senderos and Clichy) will continue to get healthy and contribute. They will face stern tests this week in the sub zero temperatures of Moscow and against a busy Reading squad. At the beginning of the season, I thought the squad was one year away from winning any trophies, but with the Gallas and Rosicky additions, they could win the Prem or the Champions League this year. The two worries for me are how they will fare against the physical opponents and who covers for Gilberto if he gets injured. One is an old problem. And the other is exacerbated by Abou Diaby’s unfortunate injury. Hopefully, Gilberto stays fit and they can find some cover for him in the reserves or in the Jan window. Either way, I am very optimistic about this year. And the team looks great for the future as well.
Cheers to Arsene for the past ten years and may he be with us for ten more!
This is not surprise news….but he would look great in red and white
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=385444&cc=5901
October 16th, 2006 at 2:17 am
My take on what has helped us do better this season
- strength in depth
- change in playing style
- thoughtful rotation
What we need to do to take second and push the leaders
- win when not playing well
- continue our form into Nov and Dec when the weather gets cold and teams get physical
- rest Fabregas and ensure he doesn’t burn out
- beat Chelsea and Bolton head to head
October 16th, 2006 at 6:26 am
There is one good reason not to get too carried away by the results. Just look at the table. We have played just 2 of the top 10 sides - ManU and Villa. 3 of the 4 wins came against sides in the bottom 5. The bulk of the work is still ahead of us. All the more reason to continue the good form into Nov and Dec.
October 16th, 2006 at 6:50 am
Next week, we play Reading, who are not only in the top 10, but also knocked out two of Chelsea’s GKs.
October 16th, 2006 at 8:16 am
You can only beat the teams infront of you.
When you play well the other team seems poor, normally it is because you did not allow them to play.
Winning games is what we do best, it is as simple as that, we are winners, we can win the league, win our game in hand and we are two points behind Man U and Chelsea.
Goals are now getting scored. It may seem simple but if you dont score you cant win, scoring three or more goals a game should mean we win the game.
Moscow will be a hard game, they are not full of Russians but Brazilians and other Eastern European players, they won the UEFA cup in 2005.
Pace and power should mean that we wont lose the game, we have so many players playing well it seems hard to know our best XI, well the midfield is the area that is up for debate. Will Van Persie start on the right now that Hleb and Freddie are out?
I cant wait for Diaby to come back into the squad/ team he can play a big part in the team soon, and Walcott and Rosicky look hot.
October 16th, 2006 at 8:23 am
It is still to early to judge teams, will Reading be in the top ten in May?
Anyway you can only beat the team they put in front of you.
We should be Reading, they have two ex Arsenal players in Sidwell and Harper but we should have enough quality to beat them if we stay injury free in Moscow and Reading.
October 16th, 2006 at 8:38 am
Arsenal squad:
Jens Lehmann
Manuel Almunia
William Gallas
Gael Clichy
Kolo Toure
Justin Hoyte
Johan Djourou
Gilberto
Denilson
Alexander Hleb
Cesc Fabregas
Alexandre Song
Theo Walcott
Tomas Rosicky
Thierry Henry
Robin van Persie
Emmanuel Adebayor
Jeremie Aliadiere
The stand out name here is Denilson.
Personally I think he is a defensive cover as we only have 5 defenders in the 18 man squad.
In England there are rumours that Hleb has an injury and it is interesting that we have four strikers, and would look to play 4 1 4 1, i.e. three of them on the bench, so why take so many?
October 16th, 2006 at 8:47 am
I think Arsenal can win the league. I’ve looked all the contenders up and down in the last few weeks and Arsenal are the best team in England and would probably the second best team in europe.
We are strong all over the pitch. As I said all along we are better off without that overrated simpleton Ashley Cole and Gallas gives us personality and all-round class that Cole does not possess. I hope Gallas continues playing left back, if he is happy, and Djourou continues in the centre of defence. Okay, we were a bit slack at the back at times versus Watford, but circumstance dictated lapses in concentration.
Fabregas is the best all round central midfielder in the world at the moment and the only issue I have is possible burn-out regarding him. However physically Fabregas seems like one of those players designed to play alot of matches. He is a slow-burner and think he actually gets better the more he plays and gets into a rythm. Still think he should get a rest in Moscow even though Alex Song doesn’t exactly inspire confidence.
If, and it’s a bif if, we can keep the likes of Hleb, Fabregas, and Rosicky fit for most of the season, the world is our oyster. Agree with Wenger this could be the best team of them all.
As for our contenders, Chelsea are fluking it as usual. Without doubt the luckiest team in the league I have ever seen. One for Mulder and Scully. i think we are better than them and without Cech they are screwed. Barca will school them tomorrow- again.
Man united are a good side but still think we have the edge. They will do nothing in europe. They are in fact pathetic in europe.
Can’t wait for Reading next week. Not taking Moscow game too seriously because games in Russia are weird. The Russian teams play this off-the-wall style of football and score completely lucky once-in-a-life time goals that will never be repeated. To say lady luck is on their side in their homeland would be an understatement. I expect us to piss the game and concede a freakish goal against the run of play. A loss wouldn’t surprise me or in the least bother me. You don’t want a tonking though so it probably is important to get a draw at least to keep morale high.
October 16th, 2006 at 9:07 am
I am confident that Arsenal will get a result in Moscow. A draw or a win ideally. I think the current Arsenal team have found a way to play in Europe and grind out results when needed. I feel the Reading game is alot trickier. We will need a strong ref for that game as I thought Reading got away with murder for the fouls on Cech and Cudicini.
October 16th, 2006 at 9:57 am
Remember whilst CSKA might be from Russia, they are not full of Russians, there are young Brazilians and other Europeans.
They are a strong unit, and dont need fluky goals to win games, they won the UEFA cup in 2005, and they did not do that by fluky goals.
Cech being out is not a time for gooners to celebrate, he is a class player and makes the premiership more attractive when he plays. Chelsea have not got their formation right, with all the players that have come and gone the team spirit is missing.
They dont have much width, but when Joe Cole comes back they will be buzzing again.
If we beat them and our game in hand we would be above them and rightly so.
We now have a massive squad, we have had back luck with injuries over the last 15 months and so youngsters have had to play, but these players have stood up to the premiership and can make it.
Reading next week will be hard but if we want to win the title this is a must win game for us.
October 16th, 2006 at 10:07 am
The stand out name for me is J.Aliadiare.
I’d love to see him play… and some of our regulars should rest.
I draw is good.
I win is outstanding.
I just don’t want any injuries.
October 16th, 2006 at 10:19 am
To be fair Aliadiare scored a great goal against West Ham for the reserves last month. Him and Van Persie could be interesting.
October 16th, 2006 at 10:25 am
Maybe not fluking it to the casual observer but they definately raise their game to levels which constrast greatly with their performances in their domestic leagues and away from home in europe.
Dynamo Kiev are a great example of the luck i’m talking about. A couple of second rate brazilians (one called Rincon) couldn’t make the grade in Brazil but gave defenders fits when teams came to Kiev.
Average players raise their game unbelievably when teams like Arsenal come to town. They do not do it consistently. I call that luck or suspended reality.
CSKA are maybe an exception because they have genuine quality like Vagner Love. That makes it even more daunting. Coupling genuine quality with large dollops of good fortune. Frightening combination.
You will see a different team and performance at the emirates, notably from their russian players.
October 16th, 2006 at 10:27 am
We will play 4 1 4 1, so you want Henry to be rested?
And then also rest Adebayor, Van Persie and Walcott?
I dont think so.
Aliadere wont even get off the bench to warm up, he is going there to get the airmiles.
Walcott is MUCH better than him and he should leave ASAP. He is OK in the reserves but there is a big gap between them and the CL. Aliadere needs a new challenge, probably in France, but I can say without question he will never play for the French first team, and therefore not good enough for us.
October 16th, 2006 at 10:30 am
I dont think AW and his team are phased by anyone in Europe anymore. On our day we could and will beat Barca so CSKA, even on form with luck wont challenge Arsenal.
AW has a formula for Europe that is succesful, he will start with a clean sheet, keep it basic, move the ball around and wait for chances.
Expect a 0 - 0 at half time and then the game to pick up after that.
October 16th, 2006 at 10:48 am
He’s not listed as injured and Song and Denilson are in the squad for Moscow.
Something is up?!
Anyone?
October 16th, 2006 at 11:34 am
Ali had been very unlucky with injuries. Since then he has worked on his game and build the bulk necessary for the EPL. He may not be as fast as Walcott but he is no slouch either. And Walcott is still too light weight for the EPL. Yes the gap between the reserves and first team is wide but Ali needs games. He should be given a chance in the first team just like Walcott.
If he does not make the grade, then I say send him off in exchange for Ribery.
October 16th, 2006 at 12:43 pm
I thought the same thing yesterday…
What happened to … or where in the world is… Matty Flamini?
He did an OUTSTANDING job for us last year at Left Back.
October 16th, 2006 at 12:45 pm
He’s been banging them in … regularly in reserves.
I think if we were to get Ribery in January…. he might go the other way as a bit of make-weight…
If he isn’t going to get his chance at all… in the 1st team…
why not let him go back to France.
I haven’t heard him complain at all… to his credit.
October 16th, 2006 at 12:48 pm
How the hell would YOU know… if he hasn’t been given any shot in the first team???
If he wasn’t good enough… Wenger would just release him.
He DEFINITELY has the skill level. We wouldn’t have kept him for so long, thru all his injuries.
If he gets his chance, he will STUFF your commentary! and SHINE.
Thats my opinion on Aliadiare.
October 16th, 2006 at 2:47 pm
A poster on BigSoccer.com wonders if Flamini stepped in doggie poo after his recent comments about not wanting to play LB.
AW says Clichy won’t start and Denilson is just along to hook up with CSKA’s Brazilian hommies.
Jo, CSKA’s prolific CF is out with a knee injury but the player to watch is Carvalho. If we can contain him like we did Anderson (Porto) then we should be in good shape.
OFF TOPIC:
Does Steve Coppel’s (Reading manager) idiotic defense of Hunt remind anyone of Ball’s (caretaker manager of Sunderland) defense of Dan Smith after that bulls**t tackle in injury time on Diaby. At least Stuart Pearce finally got it right with Ben (Elbows) Thatcher.
October 16th, 2006 at 3:47 pm
I was very happy about the performance this weekend. We playd with flair and confidence.
I am not getting excited about this win though. There was too many incidents of slack defending throughout the game. Any team with quality finishing would have had us for lunch Saturday. We are severely lacking in the air and lost almost every header.
Here is hoping our defensive lapses and aerial presense are adressed. All in all some beautifull football on display. Such joy to be a gooner. Congrats and many thanks Arsene for building and believing through the past 10 years. In Arsene we Trust!
October 16th, 2006 at 4:41 pm
Flamini is playing for the reserves tonight. As is Senderos.
As you all can remember Arsenal must have four English-trained/Arsenal-trained players aged over 21 in their squad of 24 for the Champions League. Wenger is not one to leave himself short of numbers if he can help it but he only has three who fill the criteria - Hoyte, Aliadiere and Ryan Garry.
The rest have not been at the club long enough or are too young. Next year Senderos and Clichy will qualify.
What this means for these three players is that Wenger needs them whether he believes them good enough for the first team or not. He seems to believe Hoyte is good enough as he has played him (or was it just necessity). Garry has not even made the reserve team on occasions. Aliadiere is squad depth, nothing more, nothing less. If he is happy to stay at Arsenal, I am sure Wenger is happy enough to keep him for an emergency/dead rubber game in Europe.
It is sad that whenever he got his chance he got injured. That doesn’t mean he is good enough now.
October 16th, 2006 at 6:17 pm
One note: according to Arsene they’ve got 7 players from the Russian national team. I don’t really know CSKA and have no idea how many of them are in their starting XI, but they’ll probably have some Russian spirit in there.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/6056486.stm
I think if we stick to our game then CSKA should go ok. My only fear would be a game like Boro where they have one good chance the whole game and make it and we can’t get anything to go in. But our European form makes that unlikely.
October 16th, 2006 at 11:05 pm
I watch replays of the horrific incidents on Cech and Cudicini and I am amazed how that dimwit Riley can miss both incidents. No yellow card was given for dangerous play. And the second incident was a late hit on the keeper. I just do not understand the mindset of the people defending Hunt. Whether it was intentional or not, that is not the main question as it is difficult to prove. But there is no question that when a player charges at a keeper, it should be flagged for dangerous play. Doesn’t matter if it is a 50-50 ball.
Maybe keepers will now dive in with their legs first to clear the ball rather than risk having their heads banged. I hope the FA review the incident and at least give the 2 guilty Reading players yellow cards. And send Riley to referee lower division games.
October 17th, 2006 at 1:14 am
“Anyway you can only beat the team they put in front of you.”
True. I didn’t say that our wins were lucky. I said that our league position could be misleading. Remember ManU? 4/4 wins before facing us. Who did they play? Fulham, Charlton, Watford and Tottenham.
It doesn’t matter if Reading will be in the top ten in May. What matters is their form when they face us. At present, they are riding high. They held ManU and lost to Chelsea only by a doubly deflected goal. Under estimate them at your own peril.
October 17th, 2006 at 1:17 am
I wouldn’t mind swapping Aliadiere + Flamini + cash for Ribery. Diaby will backup Gilberto and AW seems to have confidence in Song and Denilson (I don’t, not yet). We have enough strikers. Walcott can play there and with Bendtner returning, we won’t miss Ali. Bringing in Ribery would make us super strong.
October 17th, 2006 at 1:22 am
Lehmann has talked about it in detail on Arsenal.com. I was shocked that Andy Gray said that it was just a clumsy challenge. It could have killed Cech. I doubt he would said the same if some third rate foreign player had knocked off Paul Robinson.
October 17th, 2006 at 4:20 am
i understand u….
clichy, djorou, hoyte, walcott and fabregas ALL QUALIFY NOW under the new law.
next year, if they come back bendtner, gilbert and muamba will also be qualified!
October 17th, 2006 at 4:23 am
i think flamini?s refusal to play at LB is starting to bite his arse now!
if gallas can do it, i see no reason why flamini cant!
anyways, as someone else said: i wish we could trade in aliadere, flamini and song plus some cash for ribery.
having a midfield of: rosicky, hleb, ribery, walcott, cesc, gilberto, denilson, diaby would be just AWESOME.
i doubt song will be sold anytime soon though.
October 17th, 2006 at 5:15 am
Arsenal are very much a second half team this season. Check out the stats
1st Half
2nd Half